1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to modular wall panel office systems and more particularly to a modular wall panel fastener assembly.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Today, modern offices are utilizing removable interior wall partitions to accommodate flexible office planning. Many of the new building structures are now being designed to provide permanent load-bearing exterior walls, while relying upon semipermanent or mobile non-load bearing interior partition walls for subjective determination of office floor plans. An example of such mobile wall partitions can be found in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,934,382 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,803 which are incorporated herein by reference. In general, these mobile wall partitions include a rigid metal frame, frequently in a box-like configuration, that supports the perimeter of a sound-absorbing panel that can include a sheet or pad of sound-absorbing material (i.e., a sheet of fibrous material such as glass fibers) covered by a decorative exterior cover member usually of a woven fabric structure.
While the modular office system approach is certainly more flexible, it has necessitated certain sacrifices in the office environment since the sound-absorbing panel is generally not capable of supporting additional direct weight without producing tears and damage to the decorative surface. For this reason, the prior art has primarily relied upon a structural modification of the peripheral rigid support frame such as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,679 to append items to a modular wall panel. An alternative approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,803.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,330,012 discloses a screw-type pin retainer for retaining a device on a fabric or on an upholstered member.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,237,261, U.S. Pat. No. 2,624,087, U.S. Pat. No. 931,023, U.S. Pat. No. 401,084, and U.S. Pat. No. 196,621 are cited simply of general interest in nonanalogous fields wherein a helical spring member has been employed.
To date, the prior art has not provided a relatively inexpensive and efficient fastening system for appending accesory items directly to the sound-absorbing panels of modular wall partitions.